PEORIA — Fire up those grills at Alexander’s Steakhouse.
A Bradley University student buried a shot from center court Wednesday during a promotion at the Bradley Braves game against UMass-Lowell in Carver Arena, earning all spectators in attendance a discount coupon for dinner at the popular steakhouse.
With nearly 5,000 spectators looking on, Max Debaun successfully completed the Alexander’s Steakhouse Progressive Shot Challenge during a break in the action on the court.
“I honestly was so nervous thinking that I’d mess up in front of all those people,” said Debaun, who is from Batavia. “I was afraid I wouldn’t make a shot.”
Instead, his effort was well-done. In the challenge, Debaun, playing against a shot clock counting down, had to successfully make three shots, in sequence: a layup, a 3-pointer, and a shot from half-court.
He did it. With 12 seconds to spare, too.
“I was shocked,” Debaun said. “I didn’t know what to do. I just stood there for a second.”
He won a $50 gift card from Alexander’s for his efforts. And every spectator in attendance went home with a $10 voucher for dinner at the popular steakhouse.
Debaun, a sophomore Bradley student and civil engineering major, had no reason to believe he’d make the shot.
“The only basketball I’ve ever played was intramural, never played (organized) basketball,” Debaun said, laughing. “My friend and I were at Markin (Recreation Center) about two months ago and we were messing around trying to make shots from center court.”
And how did that go?
“We were a combined 0-for-30,” Debaun said, laughing.
Fans holding ticket stubs from the Bradley-UMass Lowell game have until Nov. 26 to redeem them at Alexander’s Peoria location.
Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men’s basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: ‘Shocked’: Bradley student’s half-court shot earns 5,000 fans a delicious prize
Reporting by Dave Eminian, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
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